By Lesley McCarthy, Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington, Vic
On a cold but clear July morning, members of the Rotary Clubs of Brunswick-Tullamarine, Flemington-Kensington, Footscray, Keilor East and North Melbourne ventured out to restore, replenish and extend habitat lost during the 2022 floods of the Maribyrnong River.
Essendon MP Danny Pearson was joined by local Councillors, District Governor Michael Lapina, District Governor-elect Peter Shepheard and Rotary Activate President Alex Lapina.
PICTURED: Samira Bhagwan, daughter of Rotary Club of Flemington Kensington Past President Dgraddga Sharma, lent a hand on the National Tree Day planting event.
Led by Moonee Valley Conservations Program Officer Milly Burke and her team, 6,000 seedlings were planted over a three-hour period by a large group of community members. Moonee Valley Sustainability, Maribyrnong Riverkeeper Association, Essendon Guides and Scouts, Friends of Steele Creek, Merri-Bek Landcare and the Sikh communities also participated.
A mix of shrubs, groundcovers, wildflowers and grasses were planted, all native to the Maribyrnong Valley. Pre-dug holes and a spread of mulch by council and Merri-Bek Landcare eased the process, as did the supply of gloves, trowels, kneelers and watering cans from council.
An extensive environmental display was showcased with representatives from the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG) Oceania discussing all things environmental and providing booklets and handouts.
The Fairbairn Park wildlife corridor is a major birdlife, pollinator and small wildlife habitat along the Maribyrnong River and is part of the ‘lungs of the west’. The wildlife habitat and pollination corridor development was started by the Rotary Club of Flemington-Kensington in 2021 to establish plantings linking the corridor from north of Melbourne Airport through to Royal Park and the Yarra River. Many of the small shrubs, groundcover and understorey plantings were destroyed in the floods in October 2022.
This healthy tree and plant corridor also supports the health of the river, fish, amphibians and waterbirds that call it home.
As well as planting, participants were given local native seedlings to take home, and enjoyed a traditional Rotary sausage sizzle, free coffee and drinks, face painting and other children’s activities including displays of frogs, blue tongue lizards, insects and beetles and a huge nest created from recovered branches and twigs. Moonee Valley Sustainability and the Maribyrnong Riverkeeper held their favourite tree competition and gave away KeepCups.
The day would not have been the wonderful success it was without so many people coming together and making a difference in the world. The Maribyrnong Valley Rotary Community Group, led by David Dippie, is showing how clubs can work together to inspire, connect and transform communities. The presidents of the Rotary Clubs of Brunswick-Tullamarine, Flemington-Kensington, Keilor East and North Melbourne led the way.
MAIN PICTURE: Governor Michael Lapina, of the Rotary Club of Wyndham, District Governor Elect Peter Shepheard, of the Rotary Club of Altona, and Alex Lapina, of Rotary Activate Victoria Club, put their weight behind the tree planting project.